We table this motion in a constructive and positive spirit. We, in Fianna Fáil, are signalling clearly the need for the formulation of a coherent and co-ordinated national policy on early education inclusive of all the interests involved. Through this motion we are endeavouring to stimulate much needed debate on the nature and quality of early education that should emerge in the years ahead. We want a national debate on this issue to be followed by an agreed action plan.
Early education is very important in the development of the child. International research reveals that high quality early educational provision has a positive impact on the future educational, psychological and social development of the child. Research also reveals that well resourced pre-schooling can help to level the playing pitch for children from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds. However, it must be stressed that the primary reason for the development of a proper early education policy is to have a positive impact on all children irrespective of class. It cannot be developed as a compensatory measure alone.
The White Paper on Education states that "the overall aim for the Department of Education's pre-school programme is to compensate for background deprivation". However, Nóirín Hayes, in a recent paper entitled "The Case for a National Policy on Early Education", which formed part of the combat poverty series of discussion papers presented at a recent seminar I attended, stated that the view of early education intervention as a compensation is now considered insufficient and may inhibit the development of innovative and successful programmes for children.
Dr. Francis Douglas of UCC in stressing the importance of parent education at this level argued strongly that all classes of society must be involved and that "if the middle classes do not join in, society overall will not perceive the `Early Years' as important".
The need for society to recognise the importance and value of early education for the child in itself cannot be over-stated. In the long term society will benefit enormously from positive early educational intervention. Nóirín Hayes in her paper refers to the well reported High Scope study undertaken in the United States which found that children who attended a carefully designed and well resourced programme were more likely to progress to third level training and education, were less likely to break the law and more likely to be self-supporting compared to a control group who had not experienced the programme. The High Scope programme stressed the importance of allowing children to explore play, plan, reflect and to solve problems. Researchers found that for every $1 invested in that type of early education programme the state saved $7 by the time the child reached the age of 27.
Early education will reduce delinquency, the cost of crime to society, social exclusion and educational failure. We spend a vast amount of resources today on policing, prisons and educational initiatives for early school leavers aged 13 to 16 years of age. We must reverse that cycle and invest a greater amount of resources than we have to date in early education.
As far back as 1936, Montessori succinctly put the case for early intervention:
The greatest crime that society is committing is that of wasting the money it should spend for its children, of dissipating it to destroy them and itself. When wasteful society is in urgent need of money, it takes from the schools and especially the infant schools that shelter the seeds of human life. This is humanity's worst crime and greatest error.
That message is as relevant today as it was then.
There will be an increase in demand for early education provision here in the years ahead. Internationally it has been found that economic growth stimulates greater demand for such services. In Denmark it was found that even though the birth rate had fallen from approximately 80,000 in 1974 to about 60,000 in 1986, there has been an ongoing increased demand for childcare services every year since 1974. The Danish National Union of Pre-school Teachers indicates that at present there is a shortage of 30,000 day-care places under its system. Like most modern societies the growing demand for such places has been caused by a number of factors, such as both parents working, a greater percentage of women in the workforce and a lower percentage of parents who are prepared to stay at home. While in 1974 approximately 50 per cent of Danish mothers with young children stayed at home, in 1992 only 10 per cent stayed at home. That trend is also becoming evident in Ireland and demand for early childhood education will almost certainly increase in the years ahead.
Our motion calls for the formulation of a comprehensive and co-ordinated national policy on early education. A co-ordinated policy does not exist at present. A study of the existing position would reveal that there is no co-ordination between various State agencies dealing with early childhood services or between State agencies and voluntary community groups involved in the provision of early education.
A number of institutions are involved in providing early childhood education and day care in the Republic. The principal forms of provision include junior and senior infant classes in primary schools catering for children aged four to six years, nursery schools, most of which are Montessori based, catering for children aged three to five years, pre-school playgroups catering for children aged between three and five years, the Naonraí, the Irish speaking or bilingual playgroups and créches which cater for the newborn and children up to three years of age.
According to McKenna's Childcare in Ireland 1990, 15 per cent of three year olds were in playgroups, about 2 per cent in the Naonraí and 1 per cent in Montessori schools. Department of Education statistics for 1990 reveal that junior infants accounted for approximately 56 per cent of four years olds and senior infant 95 per cent of five year olds. Two per cent of newborns and children up to three years are cared for in public and private créche facilities.
Most Irish pre-schools belong to one of the voluntary organisations, including the Irish Pre-School Playgroups Association, An Chomhchoise Réamsolaíochta, the St. Nicholas Montessori Society, The Association Montessori International and the National Children's Nursery Association. They have been providing early education services for many years and have considerable expertise and experience to bring to this issue.
The Minister for Education introduced the early start programmes in 1994 in eight locations without any consultations with the pre-school playgroups or the Montessori associations. This year the early start programme has been expanded in 25 additional locations without consultation or co-ordination. In many cases early start schools were established in the same communities where pre-school playgroups had been providing early education for more than 20 years, in some cases adjacent to pre-school playgroups. That represents an exceptionally wasteful duplication of State resources. It also represents an arrogant and dismissive attitude towards the community based pre-school playgroups which have pioneered the cause of early education with limited State resources down through the years. Those groups deserve better treatment than that meted out to them by the Minister for Education.
Despite assurances from the Minister the early start programme has resulted in a significant drop in numbers in many pre-school playgroups and, unfortunately, will lead to the closure of some. The tragedy is that there are many areas throughout the country which do not have any early education provision. If there was proper consultation in advance, much heartache, anguish and anger could have been avoided.
Only three weeks ago I received a heartbreaking letter from a teacher in the Dunloe pre-school, which is based in the Blackpool area of Cork city, informing me that after 21 years the playgroup would have to close and she would lose her job. Last year in Cork, the early start programme was established next door to the before-5 nursery in Churchfield which has an outstanding reputation for the quality and standard of its provision.
The resources invested in the early start programme have been significant in terms of equipment and refurbishment. Surely it would have made better sense to resource the existing pre-school playgroups more effectively and to locate the early start pre-schools in areas where there is no pre-school provision whatsoever.
In Galway, for example, the community playgroup in Bohermore is threatened as a result of the introduction of the early start programme. This group is catering for children from a disadvantaged area with grant aid from the Western Health Board. The IPPA, which represents over 1,700 pre-school playgroups throughout the country, feels that if consultation had taken place with its adviser in Galway, for example, they could have directed the Minister to other areas of Galway city which do not have such a valuable service.
In Ballymun there are over 11 community based pre-school playgroups offering a stimulating learning environment. These playgroups have developed through community and parental involvement for over 20 years and are now under threat as a result of the introduction of the early start programme into the area. Prior to the summer recess, the Ballymun community was forced to picket the Minister's offices and the Dáil to highlight their plight. The Minister refused to meet them at the time. It was only last week, despite prolonged agitation, that she met with representatives of the IPPA. She has not met with the Ballymun pre-school playgroups or representatives of same. This treatment of representatives of community based playgroups in this manner is shameful and cannot be justified on any grounds. There have been similar experiences in Finglas, Mulhuddart, Corduff, Blakestown, Tallaght, Warrenmount, Crumlin and in areas of Waterford and Wicklow.
The Irish Pre-School Playgroups Association is a voluntary, charitable organisation with over 1,700 members who provide playgroups and other childcare services nationwide. The IPPA strongly supports parental involvement and training in early school provision and provides an advisory service for members and non-members alike. It believes in working in close co-operation and partnership with other voluntary and statutory organisations who have a direct interest in early childhood services. It is estimated that over 19,757 children and 2,500 adults were involved under the IPPA umbrella in February 1994 — that figure has grown since then.
Side by side with this phenomenal growth in the pre-school playgroup movement Naonraí developed. The first Irish speaking playgroup was established in Shannon, County Clare, in 1968. In 1992 there were 210 Naonraí functioning all over the country under An Comhchoiste Réamhsolaíochta Teoranta. Bord na Gaeilge provides some financial assistance to the comhchoiste.
There are ten district advisers who visit Naonraí once a month which means supervisors and committees can obtain all the back-up services and advice they require. The growth of the Naonraí and the maintenance of high standards in them is due in great part of the untiring efforts of these advisers. The growth of the IPPA and the Naonraí is well documented by Dr. Francis Douglas, UCC, in his excellent history of the organisations. Their growth and development represents a significant story of empowerment of local communities over a lengthy time frame. Dr. Douglas rightly points out:
Never forget that the playgroup movement caters for approximately 20 per cent of the 3-4 year olds in this country. The movement is far and away the largest provider for this age group and there is no way in which the cumulative knowledge and experience built up can be just "written off".
The actual participation of parents was always and continues to be a significant feature of the movement's character. Considerable expertise and experience have been gained over the years by the playgroup leaders and organisers. This experience and expertise is a very valuable resource and one that should not be ignored in the context of developing any new initiative in early education services. It was a great pity that, prior to the development of the early start initiative, the Minister for Education failed to consult and reach agreement with the pre-school playgroup movement on the future development of early education services in Ireland. Given their involvement in the provision of such services over the years and their expertise and experience in the field, this was the least they deserved.
The IPPA made repeated representations to the Minister for Education in relation to the early start initiative. They articulated a number of concerns at the time. They still believe it will put a number of existing playgroups out of business and leave playgroup leaders unemployed. Existing experienced playgroup leaders are excluded from the early start programme — the value of their experience is not recognised. They also make the important point that the hidden cost of public service based pre-school education will far exceed the costs of community based and volunteer supported pre-school education. They are also afraid that the early start initiative could result in an extension of the structural primary school education system down to the age of three years. Those concerns deserve attention, discussion and resolution.
Before any further expansion of early start is contemplated, agreement should be reached with the pre-school playgroup movement and others involved in the provision of early childhood services. That is why, via this motion, we are calling for the establishment of a national forum on early education with representatives from all the groups involved and the relevant Departments. Such a forum could lead the way towards a consensus approach to the development of an agreed national policy on early education in Ireland.
There is an obvious need for such a consensus to emerge. We have all received representations from the various pre-school playgroups and Montessori associations. Their anguish, concern and anger have been conveyed to us in no uncertain manner. That is the reason I am calling for a consensus on what should be a fundamental plank of Irish policy. Nóirín Hayes in her paper, "The Case for a National Policy on Early Education", highlights the lack of co-ordination between Departments and between the Government and the playgroup movement. In addition to the voluntary-community provision there are up to eight Departments with an involvement in the provision of early childhood services.
Having done some research in this area I was surprised to find so many statutory agencies involved in one form or another without any co-ordination between them. The Health Act, 1970, empowers the Department of Health via the health boards to provide grants towards the operating costs of centres providing for children in need of special support. Pre-school playgroups are grant-aided by the health boards to varying degrees. There is no uniformity. The health boards perform no role in relation to curriculum training or the quality of the service provided. Under the Child Care Act, 1991, the Department is also responsible for the supervision and regulation of pre-school services in consultation with the Departments of Education and the Environment.
The Department of Education has had an ongoing involvement in early education. It funds the Rutland Street pre-school project which has about 95 three to four year olds attending. Over the last number of years the Department has allocated funds to developing pre-schools for traveller children. Almost 50 such groups are staffed by a variety of personnel, some trained as teachers, some with training in early education and others with no training. The Department began the early start initiative as a pilot scheme in September 1994 located in designated disadvantaged areas. It is a well resourced initiative, staffed by primary school teachers, assisted by classroom assistants. There is an initial start-up grant, a capitation grant per child and funding for parental involvement initiatives.
Under the Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, the Leader II project appears to facilitate the development of rural childcare as a sub-heading in the local development and disadvantaged areas schemes. The Department of Enterprise and Employment has considerable involvement in the delivery of childcare in a number of ways through the various training and employment schemes where childcare provision is seen as a requirement. Under FÁS a variety of training opportunities is offered in childcare settings. The new opportunity for women programme — known as the NOW programme — funded from Europe has enabled certain pre-schools to be funded, such as the Wallaroo playschool in Cork, with the aim of facilitating parents who wish to go back to school or employment. The newly formed county enterprise boards are giving some indirect support to early childhood services.
Furthermore, under the European umbrella, Area Development Management Limited, or ADM, established in 1992 to manage the global grant for local development, has a specific pilot child care initiative financed through the 1994 budget of the Department of Equality and Law Reform with a training element provided by FÁS. Under the national plan, ADM can allocate funding to child care initiatives generally in disadvantaged areas.
The Department of Social Welfare, under the community development programme, funds child care projects to varying degrees in disadvantaged areas. The Departments of Finance and the Environment also impact on the early education needs of young children in the context of town planning, residential developments and budget allocation.
With so many Departments involved there is a clear need for greater co-ordination among them. As Nóirín Hayes states:
Co-ordination is essential to ensure equality of access to early education services. A look at the development of services in Ireland shows how the drive for services has often come from needs other than those of children themselves.
Denmark faced similar problems in the 1980s and, responding to those, its government in 1987 appointed a permanent committee of civil servants from 13 Ministries delegating to these members the responsibility for following all matters relating to the conditions affecting children's lives. Such a permanent committee of civil servants should be set up in Ireland to ensure greater co-ordination. Such co-ordination is vital to ensure quality standards and proper regulation. From the funding perspective, co-ordination is vital to ensure value for money, efficient use of resources and the avoidance of duplication of resources and energy.
Given the overall education budget and the limited resources available to early education, many involved in the pre-school playgroups movement could not understand the duplication of resources and funding which the early start initiative represented for them. They were working in the field for years depending on limited State assistance and voluntary fund raising by parents. The establishment of well resourced pre-schools adjacent to their own pre-school playgroups seemed to them to be a waste of resources which could have been applied in areas where there is no education provision.
In a recent reply to a Dáil question which I tabled, the Minister for Health informed me that the latest year for which statistics are available on financial assistance to pre-school services by health boards is 1992. The total amount paid out by health boards towards pre-school playgroups in 1992 was £1,660,700, out of which the Eastern Health Board allocated £1.023 million. This would have been in the form of grant assistance to approximately 2,000 playgroups throughout the country. These are approximate figures in terms of the number of playgroups and illustrate the relative under-development of pre-school services in many parts of the country. The fact that statistics are only available for 1992 clearly illustrates the need for more proactive co-ordination between the different Departments. The Department of Health is currently collating statistics for the year 1994.
In a recent reply to a further question tabled by me, the Minister for Education indicated that up to £1.5 million has been provided in 1995 for the early start programme which will cover the activities of approximately 32 pre-schools. Irrespective of who is in power between now and the end of the century, it is clear that limitless funds do not exist for the provision of early education services. A specific budget allocation for early childhood education embracing all the providers must be put in place as part of the co-ordination process to which I referred earlier. A special five year plan with specific targets outlining phased increases in such a budget allocation should be drawn up.
The various current expenditures on childhood education in different Departments should be brought under the one heading and allocated on a rational and co-ordinated basis. It is obvious that the voluntary/community provision will play an indispensable role in the provision of early education in the years ahead. Funding decisions should reflect this reality. In that context this motion calls for the provision of increased funding to the pre-school playgroups throughout the country in the next financial year. They need extra resources urgently. I call on the Government to provide the additional resources in this year's Estimates for the community pre-school playgroups.
I note from a recent editorial by Senator Joe O'Toole in the INTO publication Education Today that pre-school education should require separate funding. He stated: “The developed world's most under-funded primary education system cannot be expected to develop the fourth level of education without separate budgetary provision”. In the same editorial he argues that much of “this new service” can be delivered within the infrastructure of primary education.
It is unfortunate that, because of the lack of consultation and proper planning and co-ordination, tension has developed between the early start programme and the community pre-school playgroup movement. I am satisfied that the teachers on the early start programme are conscious of the role of play as an essential part of a young child's life. In the same publication, Teresa Murphy, one of the primary teachers involved in the early start programme, states categorically that "... play is basic to early childhood education, supplying the foundation upon which learning is built". The INTO has considerable expertise in this area and has a positive role to play in the development of early education in the years ahead and it must be brought on board in the context of formulating a national policy on early education.
The continued exclusion, however, of full-time qualified AMI Montessori and St. Nicholas Montessori teachers from applying for positions on the early start programme is unacceptable, discriminatory and unfair. The Department of Education recognises Montessori teachers for teaching in special schools for mentally handicapped, emotionally disturbed and hearing impaired children. I am at a loss to understand why the Department cannot consider them eligible to apply for positions on the early start programme.
In reply to numerous representations in this issue, the Minister stated that the early start pre-school is an integral part of the national school to which it is attached. The Minister has refused to give specific reasons for the exclusion of fully qualified Montessori teachers from the early start programme. She has consistently ignored the fact that fully qualified Montessori teachers are specifically trained to deal with three to four year olds and have enormous expertise in this area. They should be eligible to apply for positions within the early start programme.
In the context of formulating a national policy on early education, a proper training programme with clear ladders of progression must be put in place. All existing providers of early education should have access to such a programme. As Dr. Francis Douglas points out, it should be possible for playgroup teachers who have taken the IPPA introductory course to progress to a university degree and post-graduate courses if they wish. The steps should be put in place. Dr. Douglas has initiated a BA degree in early childhood studies in UCC, the first of its kind in the country. It is the type of model that should be followed elsewhere. Furthermore, the pre-school playgroups movement should have an input into the drawing up of such a training programme.
The teacher training colleges should give greater emphasis in their curriculum to early education. Proper ongoing inservice training programmes should be provided. A specific amount should be allocated towards early education inservice training from the European funding that has been made available for inservice training generally. Nóirín Hayes emphasises the need for training. She states "There is a need to develop some system of accreditation of prior learning which will give credit for such experience and which will open up a path to further accredited training". In addition, Dr. Douglas suggests that recognition must be given to experience gained over the years and existing qualifications that people might have. There is clearly a need for specific training for all involved in working with young children.
The most under-developed and unregulated sector is the newborns to three year olds. Less than 2 per cent of the nation's children are catered for in this regard. There is no registration of crêches or nurseries, inspection of facilities or regulation of standards. The 1991 Child Care Act contains a section on the supervision and regulation of pre-school services but it has not yet been implemented. Even though this section is not particularly strong it should be implemented immediately. It is the only legislative instrument concerned specifically with early education.
There is a clear need for a national research study to be undertaken on existing early childhood services in Ireland. As Nóirín Hayes points out, there is little information available in this area. She states: "There is limited data available on the variety of services used by parents for their children, how different services are experienced by individual children and what parents count as quality". Such research is vital to the formation of a co-ordinated and comprehensive policy on early childhood services in Ireland.
My party wishes to develop a consensus approach to the development of early childhood education. We believe consultation with all involved in early education is essential. We believe co-ordination between Departments is vital and in that context we recommend the establishment of a permanent committee of civil servants to ensure that such co-ordination in the development of child care services is provided. We believe that a national forum on early education should be established and all groups involved in the provision of early education should have representation on such a forum. The forum should deliberate within a specific time frame and should prepare a five year plan with targeted aims and objectives.
A comprehensive and inclusive training programme would have to be developed for the providers of early education. Given the financial difficulties experienced by many pre-school playgroups throughout the country, we believe there is a clear need for the provision of additional resources and funding to these groups in the forthcoming financial year. The early start programme represents additional investment and interest by the Department of Education in this sector and that in itself is welcome. Nonetheless we feel that there should be no further expansion of the programme until genuine consultations and negotiations leading to an agreed plan take place with all the interested groups. Qualified Montessori teachers should not be excluded from seeking employment in the existing early start pre-schools and we make that point on the grounds of equality of opportunity. A national research study is essential to facilitate the development of a national early education policy.
As I said at the outset, we tabled this motion in a constructive spirit. We hope it will prove to be a catalyst for further debate. Early childhood education should be at the top of the education and political agendas. To intervene positively in the early development of the child will pay rich dividends for society in the future.
